We jumped apart and scanned for the threat.
The crew emerged from behind the wheelhouse. Connor standing front and center as if he wasn't just dying of a stab wound an hour ago. The clouds separated, light shone onto the deck.
Though Connor was soaking wet from rain that had yet to diminish completely, he stood in a fine suit, leaning on a sheathed sword. Behind him stood the twins, Albert and George, along with Rob, Crank, and Teenie. Raven stood behind them all, glaring onto the floor.
I sucked in a breath.
Connor didn't look at me, his attention focused on the Captain. "Well, Captain. Or should I say Blake? It seems you're not quite in charge anymore."
Blake's jaw clenched, he glared down to where Connor and the traitors stood, but he did not respond.
"You see, Blake. I don't seem to be the only one on board who agrees it's time for a change in positions. Connor's sharp gaze lands on me, "Eliana."
I take a page from Blake's book and don't respond. Sharpening my features in a fierce look. I may be afraid but I will not show it.
This seems to hurt Connor. "Eliana, do you actually think I would hurt you?" He stood straighter, no longer leaning on the sword, he unsheathed it, "I know you and Blake have been getting closer, but I won't let that change my mind. You can be a pirate, El. On my crew. You'll be free of the land, free of having to prove yourself. We will accept you since Blake can't. Forget him, and come to me." Connor reached his hand out to me.
I replayed his words in my head and thought about what he was prepositioning. I look at the rest of the crew, all willing to take me in even before all this. I technically still wasn't even officially a second mate, but with them it would be different. I thought about how Oleson said over throwing wasn't uncommon. I also thought about how he said a loyal pirate wouldn't leave their Captain's side.
I glanced at Blake who wasn't even looking at me. His face was schooled to mask his emotions, but the tight fists his hands were making it clear what he thought my decision would be. I thought about what would happen if I left him. He'd surely die. Odds of which, however, wouldn't increase dramatically if I stayed.
My lips still tingled from our kiss. The rain stopped falling. I turned back to Connor.
"Over my dead body."
Connor's hand dropped to his side. "Stupid woman, distracted by her stupid emotions. You'll change your mind soon enough however."
He jerked his head, "Drop your weapons. Boys, take your former Captain and his Queen to the cells," his glare cut into us, "Don't even think about fighting. I'll have your throats slit before you could try."
I looked at Blake, hoping he'd have a semblance of an idea for what to do. His eyes found mine but he shook his head. He did not want us to fight right now. Slowly he began to remove every weapon on his person; two small daggers and a wrench.
I took a little longer, the four blades I keep in my boots, one of which is Blake's midnight blue blade. From my corset I pulled two thin daggers. I hesitated on the last weapon, a combat knife strapped to my thigh. I access it through a hole in my trousers' pockets.
"I hate to admit this amongst other people, when I truly wished to whisper it to you while we were alone, but I've watched you get dressed Eliana."
I shiver in disgust at Connor's comment. My face portrayed my revulsion. He continued his creepy confession, "I've seen you strap that knife so many times, dearie. Now, hand it over. You can have it back when you're no longer pretending to be loyal to Blake."
My hands shake as discomfort crawls through my veins. I had gotten too trusting of men aboard this ship. I should have known better.
I drop the knife to the ground, kicking it far through the gaps in the railing, into the sea.
Connor bravely walks closer to us, behind him follow Albert and George, holding ropes to bind us.
Connor smiles, an expression of his I once found endearing. I am now repulsed by it.
"Kneel."
I fall to my knees, my hands up in front of me. Blake hesitates. Connor slashes his sword at my hands, two cuts, not deep burn on my palms. I muffle a scream.
Blake roars, "Don't hurt her, Connor. It's me you want."
Connor steps right up to Blake. They were the same height, glaring at each other. Both are still dripping from the rain.
"Call me Captain, Blake. Maybe I'll consider not killing you right now."
"There's no point in killing me here and you know that."
"I could live without the stupid title if it means I can shut you up. You're right though, which is why your girl here will have to pay for your every misstep. Now, kneel."
Blake swings at Connor's face, knocking Connor back. Teenie slams the hilt of his sword behind Blake's head, knocking him unconscious. He falls to the deck. I turn to Teenie, ready to beg, but I feel a thud as his hilt hits me next. I fall and everything goes black.
+++
Slowly, I open my eyes. Adjusting to the low lighting in the cell the pungent smell of the nearby latrines hits me right in the face. By the sounds coming from the room, someone must be cleaning it.
There was a dull throbbing in the back of my head and I massaged it with my hand as I stretched the rest of my joints. I took in my surroundings.
Blake laid, still unconscious, in the far corner of the cell. By the look of the bruise forming on his cheekbone I assume someone kicked him while he was down. Inside the cell there was a single hammock that I currently resided in. Nothing that could potentially be used as a weapon or a tool to get us out of here. I stood and walked towards the front of the cell, the only wall made of prison bars.
Oleson trained me to be good at escaping. I needed to escape. I needed to save us.
From the latrine room, our walked Raven carrying a foul smelling bucket and mop. I knew all too well how demeaning the job is. I decided to use it to press.
"He's got you on the latrines? A real promotion, huh?"
Raven startled, he didn't realize I was awake. "Be quiet." He whispered, but less in anger and more as a warning.
I lowered my voice, "You hate Connor. What the fuck are you doing making him Captain?"
Raven shook his head, "I don't have a choice. They killed Grant because he didn't back them. I'm trying to keep my neck in one piece."
I shook my head, "He's using his new position to get revenge on all the shit you pulled on him. You're fine with doing this the rest of your life?"
"Blake had me doing this too when I first joined-"
"Connor was there when you first joined. He knows of your skills and he's belittling you. Are you not ashamed?"
Raven didn't look at me, his gaze fixated on the ground. "I don't have a choice, El. I'm sorry."
"You have a choice. Break us out of here and we can fight together. We have a chance." Hope flared through me. Squashed by Raven's rejection of my proposal.
"We don't have a chance. There is no we. I swore my oath to Connor. Besides, as trained as we are, Connor has numbers and skill. We wouldn't be able to take them down."
"We can try-"
"Grant is dead, Eliana. I don't want to be next and if you were smart you'd join me. There's no way out of this one."
I don't respond as I watch Raven walk off. He slouched, dejected of any hope. A man who truly believes he has lost.
I turn and march to Blake. Gently, I eased him awake.
"Blake," I whispered, I massaged the temples of his head. Just as I had done when tending to Connor for an apparently fake wound.
I hummed a melody from the Land.
Abruptly, Blake jerked awake. His head knocked into my nose as he sat up. I rubbed the sore spot. He glanced around quickly, but when he saw what he had done, he had the decency to look sheepish.
"How long has it been?"
I realized I didn't have a concrete answer to his question. I, myself, had been out too. For who knows how long.
"I don't know. I woke up just a few minutes before you."
Blake shook his head. I realized both of us were completely dry. A sign of a surmountable amount of time.
The sea rocked the boat.
"Do you have any idea where he's taking you Blake? You said there's no point of killing you here. Where is there a point?"
"The festival docks. You know where-"
I nodded because I knew exactly where. "My old village."
"It's the closest to the Land King. That's where he has to kill me."
I shiver, "How close do you think we are?"
Blake scanned the cell, "Very. We were on our way there anyway. Before all this, we were about two days away."
"That means it has been a day give or take. Our clothes are dry but we have yet to reach the village."
The mention of our wet clothes brings back memories of what we had been doing in them before Connor started this rebellion. I fought a blush when I realized how close I sat to Blake, I chastised myself for wanting to kiss him now. For kissing him in the first place. Blake was rude and arrogant, he closed himself off from everyone. The opposite of Lucile I realized, who was friends with everyone in my old village.
I shook my head, I needed to focus. "We need to get out of here."
"No shit." Blake rolled his eyes and stood. I was also about to stand when he ushered me to stay sitting. "I don't want you to be the first thing Connor sees should he come down here."
"Fine. Do you have a plan, Blake? Any idea of what to do?"
He stared out the cell bars, scanning for God knows what. "Our only hope of survival is going to be at night while they sleep." He whispered.
"Great. We know when we're leaving. Not where we're going or how in the hell we're going to get out of this cell in the first place. Great plan, Captain."
Blake's eyes jumped to me when I said Captain. He turned towards me and stomped onto a floorboard. It creaked, lifting on one side like a trap door. Blake stooped, pulled a ring of keys out from under the board and straightened himself once more. He releases the pressure of his foot pushing on one side of the board, allowing it to fall back into place as though it never moved in the first place. The whole time, I stared in awe.
"As a Captain of a ship, I should be able to escape from any room I please. Even the cell. Since no one cleans the latrines during the day, I'm assuming night has already fallen. In about an hour, we will leave."
I shook my head, my voice a low whisper, "What do we do when we're out? Slit all their throats? Tie them up? We won't be fast or quiet enough for that. We can't re- seize control of the ship."
"We're going to have to use one of the lifeboats, row our way to the village."
I nod, swallowing. It seemed like a long shot this plan, that relied on too many factors we had no control over. Unfortunately, this was also our only plan.
"What do we do until then?" I ask. Blake took a couple steps towards me, stopping right in front of where I sat, a weird hope flared in my chest, but he didn't come any closer. Once more, he stomped hard on the end of a floorboard, it popped open. Under it lay two combat knives. I pulled them out, quickly sheathing one in my boot. I tossed the other to Blake who had closed the floorboard, he sheathed it under his shirt, near his waist.
Blake answers my question, "We prepare for the worst," he walks over to the hammock and collapses on it, "by sleeping."
He's already asleep by the time I realized I was once more designated to the floor. This time, without any blankets or pillows. I knew I was getting too comfortable.
__+++__
Connor the little bastard. Betrayed his own best friend and then on top of that, HE'S A PERVERT. I hate men.